False addresses given for Drive Only Licenses in Connecticut

The Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles has started a Drive Only License program for “undocumented” individuals who are at least 16 years old and cannot establish legal presence in the United States (no one asks why, evidently) or who don't have a Social Security number (same).

Connecticut state law explains that the purpose of the Drive Only license program is to improve public safety and to try to ensure that all drivers know how to drive and understand the rules of the road.

In addition to proving identification by supplying a foreign passport or consular identification document, applicants need to prove Connecticut residency by submitting two documents such as a bill from a utility company, a credit card company, a doctor or a hospital, a statement from a bank, a preprinted pay stub or a postmarked envelope.

The investigation by the Document Integrity Unit at the Connecticut DMV

An NBC Connecticut investigative report reveals that dozens of those licenses were revoked during a recent investigation, and that thousands more may have also been obtained fraudulently.

Via a Freedom of Information request, NBC Connecticut obtained a June 2018 Department of Motor Vehicles internal memo titled “Address Fraud Meeting Minutes.” The internal memo said the DMV’s Document Integrity Unit had become aware of “numerous” people with drive-only licenses, who had submitted fake proof of address documents to get them.

The DMV investigators spotted patterns wherein home addresses other than the applicant's own address, including commercial ones, were submitted for drive-only licenses. At first, the DMV suspected that as many as 30,000 people could be involved, but that was narrowed down to 9,000 individuals currently being investigated.

So far, 87 drive-only licenses have been revoked as a result of this investigation. The internal memo says that those applicants listed their home address as one of five commercial locations in Connecticut, and alleges that those fraudulent licenses may have been received with the assistance of attorneys.

The 87 drive-only license holders whose credentials were revoked will have to pay $175, if they want to reapply for a drive only license. There is no additional penalty, beyond the license revocation and the $175 fee.